The Golden State Warriors reigned over the NBA for nearly a decade, winning four championships in eight years between 2015 and 2022. But the core that spurred them to success are aging and could finally be breaking up this offseason if Klay Thompson decides to sign with a new team in free agency. And the team's former general manager, Bob Myers, said even if Thompson returns and the Warriors swing a trade for the Los Angeles Clippers' Paul George, it's probably not even enough to get to the NBA Finals.
Myers, who served as the Warriors GM from 2012 to 2023 and in large part assembled the teams that won four titles in the last decade, said on ESPN's ‘First Take' that because the Western Conference is so deep, there's no guarantee that a team with Thompson, George, Stephen Curry, and Draymond Green would be able to compete.
“So you add Paul George to the Warriors and you say, ‘OK, that's a really good team. [But] you almost need Klay Thompson as well,” Myers said during a segment on who of Thompson or George would help the Warriors more.
“I do think we're sometimes missing things and trying to oversimplify [by saying], ‘Oh, you add Paul George, you add Klay Thompson.' It's still not enough, guys. You need a build a team to compete with what is a loaded West,” Meyers continued.
“The thing that's different about the West is the depth of the West. You could be a very good team in the West and be the ninth seed. We talked just about Houston recently — Houston's trying to make the playoffs. We talked about Phoenix, we talk about the Clippers still wanting to be good, we talk about the Lakers still with LeBron James and Anthony Davis.,” the former Warriors GM added. “It's a deep conference, so just getting through it all you need depth, and Klay and PG may give you a better shot. But at the same time, I don't think either of them just solves all the issues for any team.”
Can Warriors or Clippers compete in Western Conference?
Both the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers may see their respective cores altered this offseason. For the Warriors, it depends on what 34-year-old Klay Thompson, who is an unrestricted free agent, decides to do. Thompson was notably frustrated at times during the last season with his role as rookie Brandin Podziemski earned considerable minutes and started 28 games.
For the Clippers, it's all about 34-year-old Paul George, who can opt out of the final year of his contract and become an unrestricted free agent as well. George reportedly wants a four-year extension, but it seems the Clippers may not be willing to offer anything past three years, the length of the extension to which the team signed Kawhi Leonard in January.
Even if both re-signed with their respective teams, neither the Clippers nor Warriors will likely be seen as championship contenders heading into the 2024-25 season considering their respective ages and lack of postseason success over the past two years. The Warriors failed to make the playoffs after losing in the Play-In this past season, while the Clippers lost in the first round for a second consecutive season after Leonard was sidelined for the final three games of their series vs. the Dallas Mavericks.
The Warriors reportedly hold some interest in trading for George, which would make things interesting, but as noted by Myers, it may still not be nearly enough to compete with relatively young teams like the Minnesota Timberwolves, Denver Nuggets, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Dallas Mavericks.
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